ChantRant

Opponent Watch: The Russell Wilson drama comes to an end

Will he or won't he be back to drive FSU's defense crazy? Apparently the answer is No.

Wilson announced he'll transfer, though N.C. State forbids him from landing at another ACC school.

And apparently Wilson's decision is all about losing his starting position to redshirt junior Mike Glennon. Indications are that Wolfpack Coach Tom O'Brien sees Glennon in the same mold as some of the other great QBs he's coached, like Matt Ryan.

Maybe. But at least now Mark Stoops can scheme against Glennon's rifle arm and not the multiple threat of pass/scramble, as was the case with Wilson.

Ponder hits the Twin Cities, meets the media

Here's video of his press conference, complete with Vikings hat. Plus a story from the team site as Ponder arrives to tour his new workplace and meet the coaches.

Twin Cities media see recipe for success with Ponder replacing Favre

"It remains to be seen if the Vikings will attempt to bring in a veteran to start in front of Ponder in the short term, but there is little question the long term plan is for Ponder to be the quarterback in Minnesota for many years."

- Judd Zulgad, Star Tribune

"The Vikings have an offensive coordinator, Bill Musgrave, who helped mentor Matt Ryan in Atlanta. They have a strong running game and dynamic receivers. A well-coached and intelligent quarterback might have a chance to be productive with all of these pluses in place."

- Jim Souhan, Star Tribune

Christian Ponder to Twin Cities newspaper: "I knew I had to show that I was healthy"

"I think I was mislabeled as injury prone. Everything was bad luck. I had a third-degree separation of my AC joint my junior year. That was from throwing an interception and going and tackling the guy because I was mad. The forearm/elbow injury I had this past year was just a freak deal. It wasn’t a major injury, just a nuisance. Once the season was done, going into the Senior Bowl and the combine and the private workouts and Pro Day, I knew I had to show that I was healthy and my arm was back and I was fine."

Christian Ponder pick getting mixed reviews up in Viking country

Christian Ponder will have a lot to prove to a large segment of Viking fans, judging by the gut reaction after Minnesota resisted trading down to grab CP7 at the 12 spot. And what a coincidence that number is, since it's been 12 years since the Vikes drafted a QB in the first round of the draft.

At least some of the better informed Viking blogs and fans are optimistic and even pumped about Ponder putting on the purple and gold. Here's a sample, starting with one of the sharpest NFL draft analysts.

“I can’t wait for pre-season games and watch this kid develop.” - Mike Mayok, NFL Network

“We’re getting a tremendous leader who has a solid head on his shoulders. He has a quick release, tremendous mechanics, good footwork, above average arm strength, is familiar with a pro style offense and can read a defense. There will also never be doubts if he’s putting in the hours required to be an NFL QB, nor well he keep Leslie Frazier (head coach) or Rick Spielman (V.P. of player personnel) up at night with worries that a feature player on our team is up to trouble…”

“I hope Ponder works out and i'm not saying that he isn't good it's just that they took him in the wrong spot of this draft.”

“A day before working out Newton, the Vikings brass made a stop in Tallahassee to put Ponder through a private session. He is considered a very good fit for a West Coast offense, but it is still not known how much of that system new Vikings coordinator Bill Musgrave will retain.”

“Vikings just got their 2nd or 3rd stringer for the next five years.”

‘I guess "intelligent" and "quarterback" together is a refreshing thought for the Vikings.’

“CBSsports.com NFL senior analyst Pete Priscoe had him the #12 overall player in the draft - and top rated QB. Says Ponder will be the best QB to come out of this draft when it's looked back on in a few years. We'll see…”

“I think Ponder is a great choice...I the best QB overall in this draft...I am so sick about hearing about athletic guys with big arms with (upside) ??...Give me smart and very accurate with a great work ethic any day of the week...Not to mention most NFL ready..Did I mention quick feet and release..

“Ponder=pro bowl”

“It’s a bit of a reach, but i love Ponder, he played in a pro style offense, his foot mechanics are simply amazing and he gets to learn from Musgrave. I think we have our franchise qb. I have huge faith in this kid.”

“This is a QB league, they had to make a move this year, it will take some time, but this dude will be good. Finally a smart, accurate qb.”

Minutes after Markuss Eligwe commits to FSU, spurned gators vow not to give up

He calls himself Markuss Eligwe, but his given name is Ukeme-Eligwe. Rivals just calls him a 4-Star. And now gator recruiters will be calling him as often as NCAA rules allow.

Markuss's coach broke the news gently to a disappointed uf coach this morning, as reported by the Atlanta J-C, when they reached Coach Ferguson at Stone Mountain High School.

“Sorry I couldn’t answer a few minutes ago,” (Coach) Dante Ferguson said. “It was Florida. They wanted to know why Markuss picked Florida State over them. They said they aren’t going to give up on recruiting him.

“We’ll talk later on with [Eligwe]. I’m not going to try to talk him out of anything. If he’s happy with Florida State, then he made the right choice. I’m just going to let him know other schools are going to come after him. It’s not over. In fact, this might make even more schools come after him.”

“Florida State is getting a young man who is very smart in the classroom and on the football field,” Ferguson said. “He’s a born leader.  He can take over a football game. He’s going to be 6-4 — and as fast as he is, that’s scary.”

Markuss sent signals of maturity and character when he spoke about his intention to major in criminology at FSU: "Great education there and I value mine dearly.”

CFB analyst Ingram Smith gave Eligwe his seal of approval, tweeting "Another great pick up for #FSU in Markuss Eligwe; smart, good kid - great in coverage, loves contact, 2 years in Viloria's system do him well."

And the hits just keep on coming.

Awwwwkward: Former Nole Javon Walker forgets what conference FSU is in

Let's forgive Javon Walker for this minor flub. After all, he didn't bungle many passes coming his way as a Nole. And, hey, it has been ten years. Walker played just two seasons for FSU (2000 and 2001), catching 65 passes for 1257 yards and ten TDs.

A sneak peek at FSU's second opponent

Here's Charleston Southern coach Jay Mills talking about the Bucaneers' spring game. In an offense vs. defense format, the game was won by the D as they held off the offense to win, 29-23. Mills gets into specifics about players and philosophy about the 2:26 mark. If CSU plays as well as Mills can speak, off the cuff and with no notes, the Bucs might actually be a feisty opponent when they come to Doak on September 10.

Noles winning with Saban's recruiting system

Florida State's recruiting has changed a lot in the last few years, and no-nonsense Nick Saban deserves much of the credit. It's his system, as adapted by Jimbo Fisher and a growing number of Saban disciples, from Dabo Swinney to Will Muschamp. In a recent story on ESPN.com, Noles' running back coach Eddie Gran paid homage to Nick and revealed some of the secrets of his signing day success:

"It's as thorough as it gets, and it never ends. You go back, you go back again and then you go back again. It's the area coach, position coach, coordinator and head coach all watching, evaluating and scrutinizing everything. It's more thorough than ever before. You also have to find out what's important to each recruit. What about their character? Are they a student in the classroom? Are they a student of the game? Do they love football or just like to wear the uniform? To be honest, recruiting is more like the NFL because it has been so intensive. We are pretty darn thorough."

Jimbo surprises with Fahrenkrug at Center, plus all the other highlights from his Wednesday ACC spring media conference

On the state of the offensive line.
"Datko will be our left tackle. He'll be back and he's fine. Zebrie will be our right tackle. Fahrenkrug will be our center. Stork will be a guard. Spurlock will probably be a guard. And all three of those guys can play center…And you got Trey Pettis (freshman) in there, Jordan Prestwood (freshman), who I thought had a really good spring. Dan Foose (RS-Fr) is in there. Lovelady (freshman) was at center. Then you got some other guys in there, (If) you get Blake Snider (RS-So) back from injury. We'll have plenty of guys."

As for the young offensive lineman.
"Three of them are supposed to be at their high school proms, they're in there playing second team…they got better as the spring went on."

On replacing Rodney Hudson.
"You're not gonna replace an All-American like that. The guy was one of the great players in Florida State history. But right now at one of those guard spots will be Spurlock or Stork, whichever one it is, with Fahrenkrug being the center."

About injuries coming out of the spring.
"We're relatively unaffected by injuries as for the fall. Should have everybody back, very pleased with that. Had solid spring work…It let us work a lot of young guys at a lot of positions. Very encouraged with what I saw."

About the offensive performance in the spring game.
"Very hard to judge. When you're so banged up up-front, it's hard for the skill guys to function. But our defense played very well during the spring. I think we're extremely talented on defense…I don't put a lot of weight in the spring game…I just like the situation having a large crowd, seeing our guys react under pressure, see how they come out of the tunnel. It's more like a game situation. I do like that."

About pressure on E.J. now that he's the starter.
"I don't think it's pressure he can't handle. But I do expect him to handle it very well. He'll challenge himself. He's harder on himself that I am, that's for sure."